Top Gear chats to Nico Rosberg

Mercedes F1 driver takes some time out to go sideways and talk shop…

Still, he's going to have his work cut out again this year, trying to contain a multi-pronged assault from Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari; the targets for 2012 Nico has picked out. And when asked whether he looks up to any other driver on the field, his response is emphatic.

"No, not really," he muses. "I just want to do my own thing, optimise my own performance, optimise Nico Rosberg." Despite referencing himself in the third person, its clear the young German is a deeply committed and steely-eyed racer. After all, who else would pick the 1980s as their favourite era of motor racing? The fiery decade of Nigel Mansell, Nelson Piquet, Alain Prost, Alan Jones, Niki Lauda, Ayrton Senna, Jean Alesi and of course, his dad Keke.